A MAN who went on a graffiti spree with a 29p marker pen has been
branded a nuisance by magistrates.

Philip Kew's scrawls sparked a police hunt which only ended
when a fellow vandal told police.

Using spray paint and the marker pen, the 20-year-old daubed his
tag Buck on vehicles, road signs and utility boxes.

Gateshead magistrates heard that he carried out the spate of damage
because he was bored. Kew's tag appeared around the Leam Lane and
Wardley areas of Gateshead in 2008 and again last year, sparking a
police plea for information.

A tip-off eventually led officers to Kew, of Evanlade, Leam Lane,
who admitted putting his scrawl on numerous cars, signs and electricity
boxes belonging to Gateshead Council, Nexus and Northern Electric.

Unemployed Kew pleaded guilty to three counts of criminal damage
when he appeared before Gateshead magistrates and asked for nine other
offences to be taken into consideration.

Magistrates handed him a 12-month community order with 80 hours of
unpaid work and told him they hoped he would be made to clean up similar
graffiti messes to the one he created. He must also pay pounds 150
compensation.

"This graffiti caused an awful mess," Brian Malloy,
chairman of the bench told Kew. "Some graffiti is quite artful, but
this is terrible."

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